August 2015

no.230 • £4.75

By Dominic Musgrave

A NUMBER of nursing homes inWales could be forced to closebecause of new UK Governmentrules, a social care chief has warned.

The controversial legislation willforce non-European workers toreturn home if they are not earningat least £35,000 after six years – andthat will include well-qualifiednurses working in social care.

According to Care Forum Wales,the body that represents theindependent social care sector inthe country, it will lead to the loss ofnursing home beds at a time whenthey are needed more than ever,and could force some homes toclose completely because of ashortage of trained staff.

Chair, Mario Kreft MBE, said:“Essentially, the Government willend up getting rid of well-qualifiedstaff doing a good job and thenreplacing them with economicmigrants without qualifications.

“This could very well lead tonursing homes being closedbecause of a shortage of qualifiednurses.

“It could also lead to the sectorhaving to pay higher fees for agencynurses, and will almost certainlymean some care providers will have

to stop offering nursing care.“This is utter madness. This is the

daftest policy I have heard of in along time.”

According to Mary Wimbury,senior policy advisor at Care ForumWales, the new Home Office rulescould push the Welsh care sector,which is already struggling torecruit enough nurses, “over theedge”.

The RCN predicts the rules will"cause chaos" for the healthservice, waste money spent onrecruitment and affect more than3,300 NHS nurses by 2017.

Mary, who estimates the numberof nurses affected runs intohundreds who care for thousandsof patients,added: “The new ruleswill have a disastrous effect on thecare sector in Wales, which employsmany nurses from non-Europeancountries, few of whom will beearning anything like the £35,000threshold.

“The actual figure of thoseinvolved runs into hundreds ofnurses who in turn care for manythousands of patients across Wales.

“In short, it will mean that therewon’t be enough nurses to goround.”

The Home Office has said therules will help reduce demand formigrant labour.

Homes couldclose due to‘daft’ rules

Residents at a care home in Tunbridge Wells wererecognised and honoured for their contributions to HMArmed Forces. Ten residents at Rusthall Lodge, a ‘not-for-profit’ stand-alone home, received HM ArmedForces enamelled pin badges at a ‘Home Front’ themedevent. In the presence of members of the Royal BritishLegion, RAFA, T.S. Brilliant Corps of Bugles and Drums,the Mayor of Tunbridge Wells, their families and otherinvited guests, the event commemorated andrecognised the valuable contribution made by theresidents in serving their country. Tthe eventculminated with a fly-past by the Battle of BritainMemorial Flight’s Dakota from 233 Squadron.Margaret Van den Bergh is pictured with her pin badge.

incorporating

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Royal visitcelebratescharity’s150 years NATIONAL maritimecharity the Royal AlfredSeafarers’ Society hascelebrated 150 years ofproviding care to formermariners with a visit fromits royal patron.

Her Royal Highness thePrincess Royal toured thenewly refurbishedfacilities, meeting staff,volunteers and residentsbefore presenting thecharity with a new RoyalCharter. This essentialdocument approved byHM The Queen sets outthe original objectives andresponsibilities of theSociety, but in moremodern language andstyle. It now hangs proudlyin the nursing care home’slobby lounge.

The charity alsocelebrated the launch of abook to commemorate its150th anniversary, entitledHome from Sea. The bookcharts the Society’s historyand explores theextraordinary lives of itsformer seafaringcommunity. The first copywas presented by theChairman of the Society,Captain Duncan Glass, toHRH the Princess Royalbefore her departure.

3CARINGNEWS

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Line-ups are confirmedfor final conferencesBy Dominic Musgrave

TIME is running out for you to book yourplace at the final two Caring UK annualregional conferences of the year.

This year’s events have the title ShapingThe Future of Care, and the last two willbe held at The AGEAS Bowl,Southampton and The Spitfire Ground,Canterbury on September 29 and 30respectively.

Speakers confirmed for theSouthampton event include NadraAhmed OBE, chairman of the NationalCare Association.

Medicines Management and Dysphasiais the title of Rosemont Pharmaceuticals’Joyce Okoro’s presentation, with CarolineMunroe, locality manager for Skills forCare, rounding off the session with a lookat Supporting the Dementia Workforce.

After a break to view the extensive exhi-bition, which will showcase all the latestproducts and technology for your carehome, CQC inspection manager TraceyCockburn will give An Update from theInspectorate.

This will be followed by ColinSutherland from Wings of Freedom andKelly Fortune from apetito Limited.

The final speaker of the day following abreak for lunch is yet to be confirmed.

At Canterbury the following dayProfessor Martin Green OBE, chief execu-tive of Care England, will begin proceed-ings.

The Skills for Care session will be deliv-ered by Margaret Sharpe, while SarahMontgomery will speak on behalf of theCQC and Ian Eardley will representRosemont Pharmaceuticals.

Script Media sales and marketing direc-tor Tony Barry will chair the events.

Caring UK editor Dominic Musgravesaid: “As you can see we have once againput together a stellar line-up of speakerswho will talk about a range of topicsthroughout the day.

“With the exhibition running alongsideand the opportunity to network, this con-ferences is truly not to be missed, and Iwould urge all care home and domiciliarycare operators and managers in the areato attend this event.”

Caring UK’s conferences are held inassociation with Care England and theNCA.� To find out more and to book yourplace at these must-attend events turn topages 23 and 24.

Professor Martin Green OBE, chief executive ofCare England

CARINGNEWS4

Residents at a Somerset care home were given the perfect excuse to get out their floralhats when it held its annual garden party. The grounds at Horton Cross Nursing Home inIlminster were spruced up by local photographer and gardener Marc England for theevent, which saw friends and family turn out to sample the cream teas and homemadecakes on offer. Other activities included live music, a tombola, raffle and a guess theweight of the cake competition. Also on offer were crafts and plants galore.Horton Cross staff are pictured with registered manager Jeanette Marshall, generalmanager Roz Gingell and clinical lead Tamsin Forde.

A SHREWSBURY homecare companycelebrated its first birthday with acharity event inspired by one of itsclients.

Caring Angels, based in Harlescott,had a bingo and raffle in aid of Helpfor Heroes at Lindale Court shelteredhousing to mark when the businesswas launched.

Owner Becky Morris said: “It hasbeen a fantastic first year in businessfor us and we didn’t want theoccasion to go by unmarked.

“We have secured Care QualityCommission registration, increasedthe services we are able to offer,grown our client base and taken onseven members of staff.

“It really has been great and wehave loved every minute of it but wewanted to use the day to givesomething back as well.

Staff chose the charity because amale client said it means a lot to him,and Becky has lost six friends inconflict and a further two who havelost limbs.

She added: “Help for Heroes is acharity that not only means a lot to usbut also to a lot of our clients so I ameager to make a difference.”

“Our first anniversary is a greatmilestone but it is only the start forus – we look forward to many moresuccessful years to come with morestaff and more clients to help withwhatever needs they have.”

Caring Angels offers services likehousework, taking people shoppingand to appointments as well asrespite and personal care such ascompanionship, medication support,end of life care, support with daycentre and wellbeing pop in visits.

Care firm celebratesits first anniversary

Head shave benefits charityA HUDDERSFIELD care home’s areamanager has had his head shaved toraise money for charity.

Ian Tetley, who works at AdenHouse, received widespread praise forhis bravery from staff and membersof the local community, aftervolunteering to have his head shavedfor the Alzheimer’s Society.

More than 20 residents, nurses, andmembers of staff from both AdenHouse and Aden Mount Care Homesgathered to watch.

Tension mounted after a raffle drawdecided that Aden House gardenerScott Boyd would be taking clippersto Ian for a different kind oflandscaping than what he is usuallyaccustomed to.

Aden House home manager, LisaBoyd, said: “The community cametogether to support Ian and it is a

great achievement to raise so muchmoney for such a good cause –although it may take some time to getused to his new haircut.”

To date, Ian has raised more than£650.

Aden House gardener Scott Boyd takesthe clippers to Ian Tetley’s hair.

CARINGNEWS6

Universities researching waysto reduce medication errorsBy Dominic Musgrave

RESEARCHERS from four universitieshave succeeded in winning a£2million grant from the NationalInstitute for Health Research for afive-year programme of research intomedicines management in carehomes.

Professors David Wright andRichard Holland from the School ofPharmacy and School of Medicinerespectively at the University of EastAnglia, are leading the study.

They will be supported byresearchers from the University ofAberdeen, the University of Leedsand Queens University Belfast, and inpartnership with NHS South NorfolkClinical Commissioning Group.

A national report identified largenumbers of medication errors in carehomes and recommended that oneindividual should be responsible formedicines management.

One study found that almost 70 percent of care home residentsexperience at least one medicationerror on any given day.

Emerging evidence indicates thatspecially trained pharmacists, whoare qualified and licensed toprescribe, can practise in a safe andeffective manner, and building onthis the research team of applied forfunding to develop a pharmacist

independent prescriber model ofmedicines management in carehomes. The funded programme aimsto determine the cost-effectiveness ofpharmacist independent prescribersworking in care homes in anintegrated manner with generalpractitioners and care home staff.

Richard said: “This is an incrediblyexciting opportunity for GPs andpharmacists to work together toimprove patient care in the primarycare setting. It is great that we havebeen given sufficient time andfunding to develop and trial themodel before fully testing it.

“By determining the cost-effectiveness of the interventionrather than just its effectiveness wealso increase the chance of theservice being adopted more widely ata later date.”

The proposal is for a resident’s GP tocontinue to manage acute problemsand assume overall responsibility forindividual resident care whilst thepharmacist independent prescriber

will assume responsibility formedicines management primarilythrough the development ofindividualised pharmaceutical careplans and repeat prescriptionauthorisation.

David added: “The prescribingpharmacist can support residentswith their medicines when theytransfer in and out of the home, workwith the GP to provide reassurancethat medicines are being regularlyreviewed and monitored, help carersand nurses in homes to ensure thatmedicines are given safely andappropriately and work withresidents to ensure that they areinvolved in any decisions about theirmedicines.”

The first year of the project willinvolve working with all stakeholdersto develop the service specification.

In year two, a small feasibility studywill be undertaken in each areawhich will then lead onto a pilot andthen proceed to a randomisedcontrolled trial.

Almond Care won the ProfessionalServices category of the CoventryTelegraph Business Awards. The 21stannual awards took place at Coventry’sRicoh Arena, and company director JuliaSenah collected the prize. She said: “I’mso happy to win this award, and it istestament to everybody that works atAlmond Care and provides a professionalservice to clients across the Midlands. Itis very humbling to have yourachievements recognised by winning theProfessional Services award. Thank youto everybody involved for choosingAlmond Care.” The judges were PeterBurns of Coventry and WarwickshireChamber of Commerce, CoventryUniversity professor David Bailey, AlanEdwards of Jaguar Land Rover, AmrikBhabra of Adecs Ltd, and Telegraph editorKeith Perry.Almond Care director Julia Senah ispictured with the award.

“By determining the cost-effectiveness of theintervention rather than just its effectivenesswe also increase the chance of the servicebeing adopted more widely at a later date.”

CARINGNEWS8

New report warns ofcare system collapseCARE England, the largestrepresentative body for independentsocial care providers, has published aground-breaking report on the stateof social care.

The report warns of a collapse inthe system if providers andcommissioners do not work togetherand more nurses are not recruitedinto the independent sector.

It states that the next five years willbe crucial in ensuring that the careand support services that manypeople rely on remain sustainable.

Professor Martin Green, chiefexecutive of Care England, said: “Thispositive vision attempts to define thecontribution that the independentcare sector can make to avert a majordisaster for the NHS and Exchequer.

“It makes very little sense to havedividing lines separating primary,hospitals and social care whenpeople with long-term conditions –working age or elderly – frequentlyuse all three. Evolutionary ratherthan revolutionary changes areneeded with different elements of thesystem working together rather thanin silos.”

Care England members haveattempted to help local authorities bymaking efficiency savings in order toaccept below inflationary fee risesand fee freezes, but this is nowunsustainable.

Care England says that increasinginstances of Judicial Review andcontinued provider attrition are theonly consequences arriving from thecurrent way of working.

Matin added: “An inability to recruitnurses in the independent care sectoris one of the main issues that iscausing additional pressure to beplaced on the care home, acute sectorand commissioning budgets.

“We are in the process of developinga new hybrid role for nursing in thecare home sector which would fallbetween a care worker and a nurse,but there is still a major supply-sideproblem, which the Governmentneeds to urgently address if thenursing home sector is to survive.”

A NORTH Shields care home hascome to the rescue to helpdisadvantaged children in theregion.

As part of Metro Radio’s Cash forKids initiative, members of staff atPrince’s Court raised £150 as theydressed as superheroes for the day,ranging from Batman and Catwomanto The Flash and Wonderwoman.

The home also held a coffeemorning, which contributed to theamount raised.

Prince’s Court provides nursing care

for up to 75 elderly residents, someof whom also need dementia care.

Nicola Coulson, home manager,said: “We are committed to helpingout the community and localcharities, so it was great to getinvolved with the Cash for Kidsinitiative, which was enjoyed by all ofour staff and residents.

“I am delighted with ourfundraising efforts and hopefully themoney raised by the home can gotowards helping disadvantagedchildren in the area.”

Staff at Prince’s Court raised £150 by dressing as superheroes.

Home helps disadvantaged kids

AN independently owned homecarebusiness in Hertfordshire iscelebrating its latest DementiaChampion.

Jan Rawling, a field care supervisorat Caremark (North Herts &Stevenage), successfully completed aDementia Champion course havingbeen put forward by her care

manager Claire Evans and managingdirector Colin Evans.

Jan said: “I enjoy all aspects of myjob, but I have always beenparticularly interested in the subjectof Alzheimer’s and dementia.

“I use it with my work today givingcarers and customers useful tipsabout this disease.”

Business celebrates latest Dementia Champion

“We are in the processof developing a newhybrid role for nursing inthe care home sectorwhich would fallbetween a care workerand a nurse, but there isstill a major supply-sideproblem.”

CARINGNEWS10

Experts help school childrenbecome Dementia Friends By Olivia Taylor

YEAR 5 students from St Benedict’sPrimary School, in Hindley did theirpart to raise awareness andunderstanding of dementia bybecoming Dementia Friends in asession led by experts from BelongWigan.

The pupils worked in an interactivesession with Belong experiencecoordinator, Marie Calderbank, andBelong dementia champion, DebbieMoore, to learn more about what itmeans to live with dementia and howto support people with the conditionby sharing in their reminiscences andcreating a calming environment.

Local social enterprise scheme,wehearttech, then visited thestudents to share tips on how to usetechnology, such as tablets and digitalcameras, to create new memorieswith people living with dementia andshare music and images from the pastto evoke happy memories.

Michelle Ainscough, a teacher at StBenedict’s, said: “The DementiaFriends session was inspirational tous all. We'd never done anything likethis before and didn't know a lotabout dementia, despite it beingsomething that touches a lot of ourlives through family members.

“The children were so engaged withthe session that afterwards they wentoff and did their own research into

dementia at home and startedbringing in new information toshare.”

A 10-year-old pupil from StBenedict's wrote in her informationleaflet: “The badges [that we weregiven] say Dementia Friend so thatpeople can see that you respectpeople with dementia… Only a foolwould not become a DementiaFriend!”

Marie Calderbank, who organisedthe activity, added: “The response tothe Dementia Friends activity bychildren at St Benedict's has totallyoverwhelmed me.

“We wanted to equip them withsome of the skills that they'd need tofeel comfortable visiting familymembers in an environment likeBelong Wigan. Since our visit weknow that a lot of the students havegone home and shared what theylearnt with their parents. They're acredit to their school andcommunity.”

Teachers at St Benedict's are hopingthat the Dementia Friends sessionswill become an annual event for yearfive students, strengthening therelationship between pupils andolder people living in the local area.

Youngsters from St Benedict’s School who became Dementia Friends.

Fundraisingtarget forRuby hit DIRECTOR Osman Ertosun andthe staff team from Excelcarehave exceeded their fundraisingtarget for brave toddler RubyYoung.

Despite her aggressivechildhood cancer, Ruby has themost amazing energy andcourage and she is not yet threeyears old.

With this in mind, Osman withthe help of his assistant SamManning, set about fundraisingwith the rest of the staff team atExcelcare.

Osman set the fundraising paceby pledging to double theamount raised for Ruby.

He said: “The world we live intoday should be able to providethe care and treatment foreveryone, no matter what age youare.

“Although we have raised a huge£15,000; our help to Ruby and herfamily does not stop there.

“We are holding our annualawards celebration for theExcelcare staff team in July andall the staff attending havepledged to each contribute £5 toRuby’s cause: the total will thenbe given to Ruby’s parents alongwith many other donations.”

CARINGNEWS12

Veteran’s bravery finallyrecognised 56 years onBy Dominic Musgrave

A FORMER National Serviceman whowas part of a team that helped testBritain’s first nuclear weapons hasfinally been honoured.

Michael Maddox has received hisveterans badge from the Ministry ofDefence thanks to the efforts of KerryYoung from Telford care homeMyford House.

The 77-year-old had begun sharingthe story of his time on ChristmasIsland with Kerry, who wondered whyhe had not received recognition forhis bravery in protecting thecomponents for Britain’s firsthydrogen bombs.

With permission from Michael’sdaughter Debbie Thomas, Kerry gotin touch with the Royal British Legionwho directed her to the MOD MedalOffice, who recently sent Michael hisVeterans Badge.

Kerry said: “Michael told me allabout his time on Christmas Islandand how he used to write love lettersto his wife Marjorie, who sadly passedaway some years ago.

“His story was fascinating and I wasso captivated by it. He was part of ateam that had to keep the righttemperature for all the parts to a 100megaton bomb that the army wastesting. Without him and hiscolleagues, Britain would not have

developed a nuclear weapon and thewhole Cold War could have beendifferent.”

Michael was part of OperationGrapple on Christmas Island in thePacific Ocean in 1958. He was calledup to National Service in 1956 anddid three years as a Regular in theRoyal Engineers, completing his basictraining at Farnborough and thenpassing out as a field engineer withthe rank of Sapper.

At the time Russia had also beenconducting nuclear weapons tests.Michael worked with the Main Camp

Fridge Team where servicemen had tofollow strict health and safetyinstructions as they risked beingblinded by the intense light from testexplosions.

Michael added: “I’m not saying Iwas a hero, but those of us situatedon Christmas Island were subjectedto close range exposure to fivenuclear bomb tests. We were part ofhistory in the making.”

Myford House is an exclusivedevelopment registered for 57residents who want to spend theirretirement in privacy and comfort.

Michael Maddox shows off his medal with Kerry Young and Debbie Thomas.

Golfers raiseover £2,000for charityASSOCIATES, friends and staff ofThe Abbeyfield Kent Society cametogether for a day of golf whileraising money for The WishAppeal.

There were birdies and bogeysaplenty as the groups enjoyed 18holes at Southern Valley Golf Clubin Gravesend before relaxing inthe clubhouse with a barbecue asthe trophies were awarded towinners and prizes auctioned off.

The overall winner of the golfwas Paul Lam, with SimonBelcher taking second place andDavid Rodrigues coming third.Femi Adesanya took the longestdrive award, Qui Ly won nearestto pin and Malcolm Phillips wonthe putting competition.

The event was a huge success,raising over £2,000 for The WishAppeal, with donations stillcoming in.

John Ogbe, organiser of theevent and home manager ofEdward Moore House residentialhome, said: “It was a wonderfulday and the weather remainedbeautiful throughout, I’d like tothank everyone who supportedus and helped us to raise thisphenomenal amount for TheWish Appeal.”

15CARINGNEWS

Young dancers have been entertaining residents at Orton Manor care home inBirmingham for over a year. One of the home’s residents won ballroom dancing compe-titions at Blackpool many years ago so enjoys seeing them perform. The dancersrecently performed at a resident’s 90th birthday party at the home. The dancers whoperform are Joshua Adams and Bethany Isard, both 14, 12-year-old Harry Smith, 10-year-old Libby Sloan, Jessica Smith, who is nine, and Rhiannon Astle eight.

SURECARE has announced the win-ners of its inaugural awards at thefirm’s annual conference.

A total of six awards were handedout at the conference and gala din-ner, held at the Hilton Doubletree inChester.

Winners included Liz Rickman,SureCare’s Croydon franchisee, whowon the Franchisee of the Year award.

Managing director Gary Farrer rangLiz, who was unable to make the con-ference, to break the good news.

Liz said: “We’re absolutely delightedto receive the Franchisee of the Yearaward and can honestly say that thislast 12 months is the best support wehave ever received. “

Other winners included AmritDhaliwal, SureCare Oxfordshire’sfranchisee, who won the RegionalAward, Paul Brandrick, SureCareCheshire East franchisee, whoscooped the Achievement Award andJimmy Anyon, of SureCare Preston,who picked up the Excellence Award.

Cheryl Hawksworth and CaronOldrieve, of SureCare Doncaster, wonthe Outstanding Contribution toChildren’s Services Award, whileRachel Gallagher, Chester branchmanager, collected the Branch of theYear Award.

SureCare, which was founded in1994, operates a network of morethan 30 franchises and branches

across the UK. Gary acquired the business from

Housing & Care 21 in November.The awards came after an agenda-

packed conference which saw a mixof keynote talks from SureCare man-agement and external care sectorspecialists.

These included Andrew Heffernanand Sarah King, from the UK HomeCare Association, who shared theirresearch on the changing care land-scape as well as its campaign toimprove minimum rates of pay.

Andrew added: “The ambition is toprovide more care at home, but thefunding situation does not reflectthis.”

His comments supported a Saga/Populus poll which shows that nineout of 10 people want to have theircare needs met in their own home.

Gary told delegates: “Our businesshas to be flexible and adapt to marketchanges. During the past 18 months,we have introduced a number of newservices as well as new branding andnew people.”SureCare winners: AchievementAward – Cheshire East; ExcellenceAward – Preston; Regional Award –Oxfordshire; OutstandingContribution to Children’s Services –Doncaster; Branch of the Year –Chester; Franchisee of the Year -Croydon.

Croydon franchiseenamed best in UK

Advertiser’s announcement

Owners recognise investmentbenefits of personal service CARE home owners and staff acrossthe UK are recognising the benefits ofpersonal service companies andinvesting vital savings back into clientcare, according to a contracting spe-cialist.

Nova, an established expert in set-ting up and administering PSCs, saidan increasing number of nursing andresidential homes were offering per-sonal service company opportunitiesto their range of employment optionsand realising major benefits for theirbusiness and staff.

Nova business development manag-er Philip Thomas said: “Careproviders are quickly recognising theadvantages of engaging nurses, domi-ciliary workers and support staff,through their own limited companiesand some are widening the offer toinclude trade supplier arrangementsfor electricians, plumbers and generalmaintenance, for example.

“Completely compliant with currentlegislation, the fixed term contractsenjoy the same conditions and dutyof care as other employment con-tracts, but the employer saves onNational Insurance Contributions,holiday and pension payments – all ofwhich can be reinvested in the work-force and client care.

“As an example, a care providerengaging a team of 100, could expectto save around £1,700 a week whichcan be reinvested into the business.

“Employees who choose to workthrough PSCs can increase their takehome pay through qualifying busi-ness expenses for mileage and train-ing, for example.”

Nova, which has 15 years’ experi-ence in contracting, has made over amillion payments to more than30,000 contractors.

There is no joining fee for Nova toset up the limited company or cost tothe care home – only a competitiveweekly charge for the candidate.However, if the worker is not workingthere is no cost.

Nova raises all invoices, runs thepayroll and pays all required tax toHMRC, so there are no unexpectedtax bills at the end of the year.

“We know care workers want tofocus on delivering their services andthey tell us that the simplicity of thePSC service is invaluable to them,”added Philip. “They particularly wel-come our same day faster paymentservice and free SMS text alerts toadvise them when their money hasleft our account.

“They also benefit from low cost

personal accident and public liabilityinsurance cover.

“As long as business expenses areincurred ‘wholly, exclusively and nec-essarily’ in the performance of theirduties as an employee, they caninclude mileage to and from theirplace of work, meals, accommodationif they’re staying away from home,work clothing, telephone costs, costof laundry for outer protective wear,portable sat nav systems and profes-sional fees and courses, including

DBS. These can add up to substantial

added income for many workersacross the private health and socialcare sector.”

Nova works with the UK’s leadingrecruitment agencies and healthcareemployment specialists, offering awide range of compliant employmentsolutions.

The contracting specialist also oper-ates across the logistics, industrial,catering and hospitality sectors.

CARINGNEWS 17

Lost laundry causescare homes hassleRESEARCH has found that missingitems of clothing or linen is one of themost common laundry issuesexperienced by care home staff.

In a survey conducted amongmanagers that have provisions forlaundering linen and resident’sclothing within the care home, halfreported that misplaced or lostpersonal items are the cause ofsignificant trouble to them, theirresidents and their staff.

Incidents of losing items during thelaundry process appear to becommon, with 81 percent of surveyedcare homes reporting that they havelost or misplaced items within theirpremises and one in ten declaringthis to be a frequent occurrence.

Overall, care home managers wantto make improvements to theirlaundries, with one in seven statingthat they feel their current in-housesetup is simply ineffective.

Conducted in February 2015, theresearch was commissioned byBerendsen, the UK’s leading providerof laundry and textile services.

Commenting on the findings, JerryRichardson, business developmentdirector for care homes at Berendsen,said: “Although laundry is rarely atfront of mind for most care homemanagers, when something goes

wrong it has a significant impact onstaff at all levels – and unless resolvedquickly, on residents too. In a busyenvironment such as a care home, it’sall too easy for items to go missing.

“We have invested in the latesttechnology to reduce this risk to aminimum and provide peace of mindto both staff and residents.”

Berendsen has introduced robustelectronic tagging and scanningsystems that ensure every item istraceable right through thelaundering process – and forresidents’ clothing, all the way backto its owner.

This includes the application ofdiscreet RFID tags, which are widelyused for tracking items, includingmedical devices in hospitals, to traceresidents’ laundry loads as well as thelinen products such as duvets, towelsand pillow cases that requirelaundering.

Berendsen applies this taggingprocess on behalf of care home staffand residents, eliminating the needfor care homes or families to tag allresidents’ clothing themselves, whichusually involves the time-consumingtask of attaching a name label to eachand every item.

THE hairdressing service at aBupa care home has been given amakeover of its own under thesupervision of the residents whouse it.

Residents at Craigbank inGlasgow were asked to give theirviews on what could be done torejuvenate the hairdressing salon,and encourage even more peopleto use it. Residents opted for afull redecoration, with theirchoices of wall paper and colourschemes.

The slick modern looking salonis now open for customers, with anew stylist visiting every Monday.

Alan Twigg, manager at Bupa’sCraigbank care home said: "I amdelighted that we’ve got a nicenew look for the hairdressingroom and a talented new stylistcoming in, but even morepleased that our residents get soinvolved in the process.

“We’re always looking to get thislevel of engagement in thevarious projects at Craigbank andwe know our residents reallyappreciate when their opinionsshape the end result. Hopefullythe new-look hairdressing servicewill be even more popular thanthe old one.”

Hairdressingsalon gets amakeover

CARINGNEWS18

The Clitheroe Residential Home recently helped a resident celebrate his daughtergetting married. Arrangements were made for Vincent Talbot's daughter Tracey to cometo the home with the wedding party so she could see her dad and have some picturestaken. Catherine Metcalfe, the home’s manager, said: “It was so important for bothVincent and his daughter to be together on this special day. We were privileged in beingable to share part of their special day within the home and enabling Vincent to be by hisdaughter’s side. We wish the happy couple all the best for the future.”

STEPHANIE Doherty, co-owner andjoint director of Caremark’s Oldham& Tameside branch, has beenunanimously elected as chair of theOldham Dementia Action Alliance.

The Alliance comprises a number ofpartners involved in social carededicated to creating a dementiafriendly town.

This move clearly demonstrates theimportance of creating a dementiafriendly community in Oldhamthrough meaningful partnershipworking between the local authority,Clinical Care Commissioning Group,local businesses and Caremark.

Areas for priority of the ODAA for2015 will include continuing to worktowards creating a dementia friendly

community in Oldham through:� Increasing dementia awareness inthe community, in particular SouthAsian communities.� Increasing inter-generationalactivities.� Continuing to ensure DementiaFriends sessions are widely availablein Oldham.� Increasing engagement with arange of local businesses throughmembership of the Dementia ActionAlliance.

The Oldham care provider hasalready delivered a number ofDementia Friends informationsessions resulting in 150 DementiaFriends of the 200 aimed for, beingcreated in their local community.

Co-owner is Alliance chair

Group and Trust join fortherapeutic experiencesCARE UK has teamed up with aperformance charity to bringtherapeutic workshops using colour,light and music to more of its carehomes in Greater London.

The partnership should enable EyeMusic Trust to raise funding from theArts Council and the BaringFoundation to develop and widen itswork, which includes workshops forolder people living with dementia.

The link up comes about after thecharity ran very successful week-longworkshops at Care UK’s HeaversCourt in Croydon, Woodland Hall inStanmore, Whitefarm Lodge inTwickenham and Charlotte Housecare homes in Isleworth.

The workshops involve the EyeMusic Trust team setting up aninstallation including fabric screens,LED lights, computers andmovement sensors. They then runhighly interactive sessions of 40-60minutes for groups of residents, whouse the sensors to control colour andlight and to play music. Theculmination of the week’s work is aconcert, put on by the sessionparticipants for other residents, aswell as family and friends.

Sheila Peterson, activitiescoordinator at Heavers Court inCroydon, said: “The participantsseemed to really enjoy making musicas a group, rather than just listeningto it.”

Nirmala Juggapah, home manager

at Woodland Hall in Stanmore, added:“The workshops had a very visibleand positive effect.

“Participants had real pleasure intheir faces and the music broughtthem out of themselves. Overall, itcreated a wonderful atmosphere inthe home.”

At Whitefarm Lodge in Twickenham60 residents took part in twice dailyworkshops over a week.

Shane Cosgrove, manager of thehome, said: “Residents really enjoyedthe experience of controlling themusic and light and those living withdementia responded well. Theworkshops are very interactive butdesigned for all levels of ability. Mostimportantly, they’re fun.”

Additional sessions are planned forthree more Care UK homes – FranklinHouse and The Burroughs in WestDrayton and Whitby Dene inEastcote.

Commenting on the continuingpartnership with Eye Music Trust,Andrew Knight, Care UK’s managingdirector of residential care services,added: “We believe passionately inthe positive and therapeutic role thatthe arts can play in the lives of olderpeople who are living with dementia.

“We’re therefore very pleased to beable to support Eye Music Trust in itsexciting work and look forward tohearing plenty of positive storiesfrom the forthcoming workshops inour Middlesex homes.”

CARINGNEWS20

A care home resident from Bolton enjoyed a visit from his daughter and her horse aspart of a National Care Home Open Day celebration. Dawn Hartley and her horseMaverick surprised her father, Fred and fellow residents at Four Seasons Health Care’sSt Catherines Care Home, who marked the day with a Country and Western themedevent. A spokesperson for the home said: “Fred had not seen Maverick for some timeand was overwhelmed with joy when his daughter arrived. The horse recognised Fredstraight away, nuzzling into him so Fred could hold him. It was a lovely moment foreveryone to see.”

THE Randolph Hill Nursing HomesGroup has announced theappointment of Lynn Russell as itsgroup nursing manager.

Lynn initially joined the Scottishcompany in 2005 as manager of itsAshley Court home in Edinburghbefore being promoted to a seniormanagement role within the group in2012.

Randolph Hill director of nursing,

Ingrid Neville, said: “Lynn is not onlya highly experienced and extremelycapable nurse, she is also a greatmanager with a proven track recordwithin the group.

“We are delighted to have her moveinto this new role which will helpensure we can build on the alreadyhigh standard of care and support weprovide for our residents within allour homes.”

Group appoints nursing manager

Natalie completes herfirst half marathon toraise money for homeBy Olivia Taylor

A CHESTER woman has taken part inher first ever half marathon to raisemoney for a local care home.

Natalie Harrison was raising moneyfor Florence Grogan House wherestaff provide specialist dementia carefor her mother, Sheila Danby, 76.

Natalie completed the Chester HalfMarathon in 2 hours 21 minutes,raising nearly £400 for the CLS-runhome, in recognition of the excellentcare that its staff provide.

She said: “I wanted to thankeveryone at Florence Grogan as theywork so hard – literally around theclock – to care for my mum and theother residents. They do a truly greatjob!”

As well as providing generalresidential care, Florence GroganHouse offers a specialist dementiacare service, pioneered by CLS.

This is designed to support thespecific physical and emotional

needs of people living with dementia,and to enable them to remain activeand independent for as long aspossible.

Natalie added: “My mum strugglesto talk so communication is an issuefor her, however the staff areextremely patient and caring, whichmakes all the difference. Mostimportantly, they take the time to justchat and share a joke with her, whichshe loves – she’s always had a greatsense of humour!”

The money Natalie has raised willgo towards the residents’ comfortfund, which is spent on a variety ofentertainment and activities for theresidents to enjoy.

Joy White, home manager atFlorence Grogan House, said:“Natalie’s achievement is trulymarvellous and we are delighted thatshe feels so passionately about thecare we provide. All of the staff andresidents say a big thank you back toher.”

FORMER Norwich City footballerPaul McVeigh officially openedCaring Homes’ newest site.

The football hero was supportedcutting the ribbon by founder ofCaring Homes Group, Helena Jefferyand Judith Rundle, the first residentto move in that same day.

Chairman of Bernard Matthews,David Joll, also presented a canvasphotograph to Helena Jeffery fordisplay in a dining room at Ivy Court

named after the well-known Norfolkturkey farmer.

Many of the home’s lounges anddining rooms have been named afterNorfolk celebrities.

Other local celebrities that haverooms named after them are AdmiralLord Nelson, Jeremiah Colman ofColman’s Mustard and Delia Smith,TV chef, author and majorshareholder at Norwich City FootballClub.

Ex-footballer opens new facility

CARINGNEWS22

A DEDICATED care home manager iscelebrating 25 years working at SilverLodge care home.

Jayne Vickers, 54, started her careerin the sector as a carer at theSheffield facility 25 years ago.

Since then, her motivation anddedication to her work has enabledher to rise through the ranks and shehas held the position of manager atthe home for the past eight years.

Her fellow members of stafforganised a special surpriseanniversary party for Jayne with animpressive cake and members ofstaff past and present and allresidents and their family membersjoined in with the party.

Jayne said: “It was absolutely

fantastic that my colleaguesorganised this special party for me.

It was great to see faces old andnew and lovely to spend time withresidents’ relatives.

“I have really enjoyed the past 25years at Silver Lodge, it is anexcellent care home with a dedicatedteam of staff who are committed toproviding the highest quality care forresidents.

“There have been challenges alongthe way, but it is an extremelyrewarding role – here’s to the nextwork anniversary.”

Keeping it in the family, Jayne’sdaughter Bethany,is a care assistantat Silver Lodge and Jayne’s twin sister,Julie, works at the home as a cook.

Jayne celebrates 25 yearsJayne Vickers celebrates her anniversary with Silver Lodge staff.

25CARINGNEWS

A Leicester care home has broadened it’s offerings to residents with a new pub.The ‘Aberry Arms’ at Aberry House Nursing Home allows care users to order a cookedpub meal as well as having a stock of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. The pub isdecorated with old style posters and a dart board to add fun to the premises and toencourage service users to play together.

Marcella tastes successat annual competitionA TALENTED Sanctuary Care chef gottaste buds tingling at an annual com-petition.

Marcella Field, chef manager atYarnton Residential and NursingHome in Yarnton, Oxfordshire, wenthead to head with seven colleaguesfrom across the organisation in a 90-minute cook-off to win the final ofSanctuary Care’s chef of the yearcompetition.

Marcella dished up a mouth-water-ing menu of lamb cooked two ways –a miniature shepherd’s pie and pan-fried lamb cutlet – with dauphinoisepotatoes, baby vegetables and a redcurrent jus.

Her prize-winning dessert was atarte au citron finished off with sum-mer fruit coulis and an artistic choco-late decoration.

The competition, which was spon-sored by Unilever Food Solutions andheld at their head office in Surrey, hasbeen running for six years and isopen to cooks and chefs fromSanctuary Care’s homes across thecountry.

Entrants were tasked with creating amain course and dessert which wouldbe suitable for people in a care set-ting. Their dishes were judged oninnovation, nutrition, balance and ofcourse taste.

Marcella said: “I am overwhelmedto have won the competition this yearas the standard of entries has been

really high. I think it is so importantto have competitions like this, notonly to showcase our creative flair,but also to help break the taboo ofcare catering.

“The teams at Sanctuary Care’shomes work hard to make nutritious,high quality food for our residentsand it’s a joy to see the enjoymentthey get from the dishes we prepare.”

The panel of judges comprisedMark McCarthy, Sanctuary Care’smanaging director, Tom Parramore,Sanctuary Care’s regional director,Cathy Amos, business manager forhealth care at Brakes’ Brothers andPaul Wright, Unilever’s FoodSolutions’ culinary development chef.

Marcella Field

THE Old Vicarage care home inChurchill has welcomed a newManager – who is a familiar face atthe home.

Hatty Hembrow has transferred toThe Old Vicarage from her role asmanager of the homecare provider inWest Hewish, which is also part of theWestern Super-Care Group.

Hatty began her care career at TheOld Vicarage more than a decade agowhen she worked as a kitchen assis-tant whilst still at school.

After leaving school she wasemployed in a care role at the home,and worked her way up to the posi-tion of Deputy Manager.

Hatty said, “I am delighted to be

returning to The Old Vicarage, whereI began my care career.

“It is lovely to see that so many ofthe staff I worked with when I beganare still here.

“I have arrived at an especially busytime, as we are preparing for ourannual summer party on 23rdAugust.”

The Old Vicarage is part of WesternSuper-Care Group, a family-run busi-ness caring for older people in NorthSomerset.

Western Super-Care Group has carehomes in Weston Super-Mare andChurchill, and also provides care topeople in their own homes in NorthSomerset and the Mendips.

Familiar face returns

27CARINGNEWS

RESIDENTS at two Lymington carehomes have gone ‘down on the farm’without leaving the sunny comfort oftheir gardens.

Family-owned Colten Care arrangedfor a special collection of farm ani-mals, including lambs, pigs andgoats, to visit Belmore Lodge andLinden House.

Residents stroked and played withthe visitors brought along by theAlton-based Mill Cottage FarmExperience.

Animal visitors included donkeys,turkeys, chickens, ducklings, chick-ens, dogs, guinea pigs and rabbits.

Colten Care activities organiserJackie Fergusson said: “The residentsloved interacting with the animalsand it really was a case of meeting allcreatures great and small. There were

smiles all round.” Belmore Lodge’s ‘farm experience’

day also featured the Romsey-basedfolk band Innominata and, fromSouthampton, the Sally StompersLine Dancers.

Plants grown by a residents’ garden-ing club were sold to visitors whopopped in for the day. Proceeds willgo to the home’s nominated charityfor this year, the Hampshire and Isleof Wight Air Ambulance.

The Mill Cottage Farm Experiencespecialises in educational and recre-ational animal visits to care homes,schools and other venues.

As well as Belmore Lodge andLinden House, Mill Cottage animalshave made recent visits to ColtenCare homes in Winchester,Brockenhurst and Salisbury.

Belmore Lodge resident Joan Connolly holds Larry the lamb. With her is Hollie Josephfrom Mill Cottage Farm Experience.

Residents enjoy farm visit

STAFF and residents at London careprovider Sahara Care are celebratingthe anniversary of several of thegroup’s homes.

Sahara Parkside, Sahara House andSahara Lodge are all marking theiranniversaries with special celebra-tions which will look back at theirhistory of delivering care.

Sahara Parkside, the group’s newesthome, was opened on June 10 2009by local councillor Liam Smith, whodescribed it as “the benchmark for allother care homes.”

The home in Barking is made up of10 three-bedroom apartments sup-porting independent lifestyles and issuitable for residents with sensoryimpairments, physical disabilitiesand other complex needs.

The second home to celebrate itsanniversary is Sahara House, whichopened 11 years ago.

The facility is made up of twohomes located next door to eachother in Ilford, which have beendesigned to provide a supportiveenvironment where service users canlive together in a thriving community,while still maintaining their ownindependence and personal space.

The final home to celebrate its

anniversary is Sahara Lodge, based inForest Gate, which is celebrating 15years in operation having opened inJune 2000.

Sahara Care’s chairman, TerenceBrown, said: “It is brilliant to see somany of our homes celebratinganniversaries this month.

“Our staff at these homes do anamazing job and it is good to recog-nise the importance they play inhelping people with disabilities in thelocal community.

“I hope that each of these homescontinues to enjoy an illustriousfuture; helping hundreds of peoplewith complex needs.”

Sahara Care was founded in 1997 bySharon Kaur, its managing director,and has grown to become one of thelargest care groups in East London,providing assistance to services userswith a broad range of disabilities andcomplex needs.

Speaking about the group’s growth,Sharon said: “When I founded SaharaCare nearly two decades ago my goalwas to help people with learning dis-abilities live a more independent life.

“I never thought Sahara Care wouldgrow as big as it has and would havehelped so many people.”

Operator marksanniversaries atseveral homes

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By Olivia Taylor

THE winners of the Care and SupportWest Awards have been announced ata glittering ceremony at BathRacecourse hosted by formerWatchdog presenter and bowel can-cer survivor Lynn Faulds-Wood.

Around 170 representatives of thelocal care industry, Care QualityCommission and local councilsattended a gala dinner for the annualpresentation.

Now in their third year, the Care andSupport West awards celebrate theunsung heroes of the care industry,giving care providers and their staff inthe former Avon area an opportunityto honour and congratulate peoplewho have gone the extra mile.

“The Care and Support West Awardsare enormously well received,” saidchief executive of the Awards, DavidSmallacombe.

“In an environment of negativepress, rising standards and an ageingpopulation, pressure on the careindustry has never been higher. It can

be all too easy to overlook the bril-liant, heartfelt work that goes on dayin, day out across the region.

“We established these awards toacknowledge the great work that isbeing done to maintain tremendouslyhigh standards with integrity andcompassion.”Winners were: Best Care HomeRegistered Manager – TeresaSilverthorne, AbleCare; Best CareHome Front Line Worker – JoanneKing, Windmill Care; Best Team inany care setting – Generic &Homeless Floating Support Team,Alliance Care; Best Home CareRegistered Manager – Murie England,Stepping Stones; Best Home CareFront Line Worker – Sally Stamp, EliteCare; Best Day Services Front LineWorkers – Christine Hall and Liz Gray,Milestones Trust; Best SupportedLiving Front Line Worker – JaneSmart, Manor Community; BestAncillary Support Worker – DebHicks, Windmill Care; OutstandingContribution to Care – Matt Nines,Homes Caring for Autism.

Excellence celebrated atthird awards ceremony

Winners of the Care and Support West Awards at Bath Racecourse.

Care home staff tolead UK in skillsA GROUP of Lancashire care homestaff have reached a landmark on aninnovative course – one of the first ofits kind in the UK.

Seven senior healthcare workers atSpringhill Care Home in Accringtonembarked on the 15-month assistantpractitioner programme earlier in theyear.

The programme closely adheres tomany aspects of a registered nursingcourse, and will allow qualified staffto develop clinical and managementskills.

Springhill is one of the first carehomes in the country to offer thecourse, as part of its commitment tomaintaining excellent standards incare.

The role will allow healthcare work-ers to become practitioners in theirown right, working alongside theirnursing colleagues, taking on addi-tional responsibilities and providingextra assistance, offering a tailormade solution to the national short-age of nurses experienced across thecare sector.

The staff are progressing exception-ally well through the qualification,receiving much praise from theirtutors who describe the learners as‘dedicated and professional in theirapproach to the programme’.

They recently completed an exami-

nation where several of the learnersearned distinctions and merits.

Theresa Swan, learning and devel-opment manager at Springhill, said:“The national shortage of nurseswithin this sector is likely to last formany years.

“Therefore the assistant practitionerrole is an excellent response to theproblem, which will help to meet thechallenges we face in health andsocial care.

“The group is progressing very well,and have just passed an examinationin anatomy and physiology. This ini-tiative will benefit not only the learn-ers, but all our staff and their nursecolleagues.

“As a result, the residents of thehome will experience an even higherlevel of service.”

Recent reports suggest the care sec-tor has been one of the worst affectedby nurse shortages, with statisticsreflecting the number of nurses overthe age of 55 is currently at 30 percent, in comparison with 13 per centacross the NHS, meaning a higherproportion are nearing retirementage.

Springhill Care Home is operatedby Springhill Care Group, which wasrecently named as a finalist in threecategories in the prestigious BeInspired Business Awards.

Yet-to-open home recognisedA NEW housing development forolder buyers in Bearsden has won atop property award before it has evenopened.

Although the first properties at StAndrew’s View are not expected to beoccupied just yet, the project won thesenior living development of the yearcategory at the Scottish HomeAwards.

The judges said of the development:“Our winner stood out as a beautifultranquil and integral part of this newcommunity which is close to allamenities. St Andrew’s View has astrong community emphasis which

we thought provided a complete ser-vice with a deep understanding ofsenior living needs.”

The 20 one and two-bed modernapartments are designed to specifi-cally meet the needs of older peopleand have been built for Bield, one ofScotland’s leading providers of retire-ment housing.

Susan Jackson, sales and marketingmanager at Bield, added: “It sayssomething about the quality of thebuild and the concept behind StAndrew’s View that we have won inthis category before the developmenthas welcomed its first buyer.”

29CARINGNEWS

In the second of a two-part feature, Martyn Walley, national technical manager at Aico Ltd, looksat the challenges presented in protecting people living in supported housing from the dangers offire and carbon monoxide and the range of solutions available to protect vulnerable residents.

Adapting a system to different occupants’ needsWIRELESS alarm interconnectionsystems also make it far simpler tomodify an existing alarm system tohelp meet the changing needs of dif-ferent occupants, such as adding analarm for the hearing impaired. Youjust add an alarm where needed(hard wired to a permanent mainsfeed) and ‘House Code’ it in with therest of the system.

Different manufacturers systemshave different ways to House Code.

In the case of Aico’s RadioLINK,House Coding is very simple and isachieved by pressing a button oneach unit to put them into ‘HouseCode’ mode.

The units will then automaticallycode together and ‘learn’ each other’sunique serial numbers. The ‘HouseCoded’ system can then be sealed toprevent other RadioLINK devicesfrom neighbouring properties frominterfering with each other.

Achieving low cost wider alarm coverageIn smaller Houses in MultipleOccupation (HMOs) and SupportedHousing schemes, wireless alarminterconnection systems can be usedto provide a complete building-widesystem where there is one way com-munication between the alarms inthe communal areas and individualapartments.

The system can be set up so if analarm is activated in a communalarea it triggers the alarms in the indi-vidual apartments for increased audi-bility, but if an alarm is activated inan individual apartment the commu-nal areas won’t be triggered, whichminimises nuisance or false alarmsthat may cause a building-wide evac-uation.

Easy Alarm System ControlsBS 5839-6:2013 states that alarmsshould be capable of being silencedfrom floor level; this is particularlyimportant for people with mobilityissues. To achieve this you will need awall mounted alarm control device toenable occupants to test, locate orsilence alarms from a safe location.These are available for smoke andmixed smoke and CO systems. Aico’sEi450 Alarm Controller is completelywireless, so can be easily positionedinto the most accessible place for theuser.

Alarms for the Hearing ImpairedAlarms for the Hearing Impaired havebeen available for some time. Theycome with a strobe light that can bewall or surface mounted, and avibrating pad designed to be placedunder a pillow to wake people. Ideallyopt for a model that comes with wire-

less interconnection so it can be easi-ly interconnected to other smoke andCO alarms and also easily removedand used elsewhere when no longerrequired for that property.

Connecting with Warden Call SystemsTelecare/Warden Call Systems arecommonplace in dwellings for vul-nerable people but in most cases arenot connected with the existingSmoke and CO alarm system in thatproperty. If a fire was to start or therewas a CO leak, the alarms would acti-vate but external assistance wouldnot be sought; this could be fatal.

There are options out there – mainlyrelays – that will achieve this butmost haven’t been specificallydesigned for this purpose and, as aresult, are not ideal.

Aico’s latest product - the Ei414Fire/CO Alarm Interface – has beendesigned to simply and economicallyovercome this. It provides a dedicatedconnection between Aico Smoke,Heat and CO alarms with most newand existing Telecare/Warden CallSystems, enabling the appropriatesignal to be transmitted directly tothat monitoring system should fire orCO be detected.

As the Ei414 is a RadioLINK deviceand links to Aico’s range ofRadioLINK Smoke, Heat and CO

alarms wire-lessly, itbrings all theadvantages ofa wirelessinterconnectalarm system.

According toFire Statistics,UnitedKingdom2008: “Deathsand injuriesfrom fire willrise in pro-portion to theincreases innumbers of older people. Almosttwice as many people over the age of50 now die in dwelling fires in the UKeach year compared to those under50.” Faced with an aging population -the vast majority of which live in theirown homes - plus the diverse range ofpeople requiring Supported Housing,the need for additional measures toprotect the more vulnerable membersof society from fire and CO poisoningwill only continue to rise. By usingquality product from a reputablemanufacturer, flexibility can be builtin to fire and CO alarm systemsenabling them to be adapted tofuture residents, no matter theirrequirements.

Martyn Walley

CARINGNEWS30

How can you give residents a truly dignified dining experience? apetitonutritionist Kelly Fortune looks at the role of choice in fostering dignity atmealtimes ...

A dignified dining experienceWITH preserving the dignity of theirresidents so paramount for carehome operators, and with mealtimesbeing such an important part of theday, fostering a dignified diningexperience is clearly a big priority. And choice plays a big part in this…

When I recently spoke at the CaringUK conferences, I was reminded ofthe importance of choice.

We conducted a survey and foundthat 100 per cent of respondentsthought that allowing residents tochoose what they would like to eatplays a major role in fostering dignity.

After all, even if it’s simply a case ofchoosing which sandwich to pick upat a service station, we all makedecisions about what to eat on a dailybasis, and it’s hard to imagine thisbasic choice being taken away.

Yet, while it’s hard to disagree withthis in principle, providing choicegoes far beyond making sure thereare more than a couple of options tochoose from at mealtimes.

Catering to special dietsNot only does choice relate to theselection you’re able to offer yourresidents, it also has to encompassspecial diets.

For example, when you’re cateringto residents with dysphagia (a term

that refers to swallowing difficulties),it becomes even more complicated tooffer a selection of meals that willenable them to dine with dignity.

I know of cases where residentswith dysphagia have opted to dinealone or who have almost stoppedeating altogether because their diningexperience has become so fraughtwith worry about the risk of chokingand of the unappetising nature of thefood they are served.

Understandably, it can be incrediblydifficult for homes to prepare achoice of meals that are genuinelyappetising, but are safe for residentswith dysphagia to eat.

But it’s hard to foster dignitywithout tackling both.

Appearances countapetito’s meals for residents atvarious stages of dysphagia areprepared in line with each of theDysphagia Diet Food TextureDescriptors for a texture-modifieddiet, including thick puréed mealsmoulded to look like a traditionaldish and pre-mashed choices withappetising colour combinations, sothey look as good as they taste.

Regardless of whether you seek helpfrom specialists in catering to carehomes, serving all residents meals

that are as close to normal inappearance as possible – with theassurance that they are safe for themto eat – is vital in ensuring they cantruly dine with dignity.� For advice on helping residentsdine with dignity or to book a FREEtasting session with the apetito carehomes team, visit www.challengeapetito.co.uk or call 0800 542 2631.

Kelly Fortune

NIGHTINGALE care home inEcclesfield ran a food andnutrition art competition with alocal primary school.

Jemma Bolsover’s entry, whichcovered all healthy options, wasnamed the winner, witheverybody who took part alsoreceiving a prize.

The home also recently held avirtual cruise for the residentswho enjoyed sampling food fromcountries including Australia andIndia.

This prompted stories from theresidents about their ownholidays when their children wereyoung and the kind of foods theyused to eat.

Some even went without food sotheir children could eat.

Staff dressed up in differentcostumes, along with theresidents, and enjoyed beingentertained by a visiting singer.

The cruise ended with astopover in Hollywood for a nightat the Oscars.

All the relatives, residents andstaff dressed up in formal eveningwear.

The staff team were presentedwith their own award for the greatwork they did in organising thecruise.

Food andart are onthe menu

31

Replacing hard hats with thinking capsLOCAL school children donned hardhats and high visibility vests to visitthe site of a new care home inHersden, Canterbury.

Youngsters from Hersden VillagePrimary School let their imaginationsrun wild when they visited the site ofMeadow View Residential andNursing Home to get inspiration forartwork to bury in a time capsule onthe site.

10-year old pupils Jessica Barker,Nathan Wells and Reuben Jenkinswere joined by their head teacherJean Kennett and the soon-to-beSanctuary Care home manager GillStoddart-Rye for an exclusive tour ofthe site.

The pupils will now create artworkdepicting what they think life will belike in 60 years’ time and to tell peo-ple about life in 2015. They willreturn to the site shortly and burytheir creations in a time capsule,

which will be opened in 2075. The care home is being built by

specialist care home developerCastleoak on behalf of SanctuaryGroup. When complete it will be runby Sanctuary Care and will provideresidential, nursing and dementiacare. It will include 60 spacious en-suite bedrooms, many of which willinclude their own French doorsopening onto a paved patio area, aswell as airy lounges and diningrooms.

Gill, who is looking forward to man-aging the home for Sanctuary Care,said: “It was a great pleasure to bewelcomed to the site at such an earlystage, along with the children fromthe local school – the idea of involv-ing the next generation is a fantasticidea and I was proud to be a part ofit.”

Meadow View is set for completionin the summer.

Nathan Wells, Reuben Jenkins, soon-to-be home manager Gill Stoddart-Rye, JessicaBarker and headteacher Jean Kennett.

CARINGCOMMERCE32

A STATE-of-the-art, multi-functionallounge and living space has beenofficially opened by Her Grace, theDowager Duchess of Rutland atVista’s New Wycliffe Home.

The Butterfly Lounge incorporatesassistive and innovative technologyto provide for sight loss and dementianeeds.

New Wycliffe Home deliversresidential care to older people with asensory impairment and people withdementia.

The Butterfly Lounge is a newextension to the building, funded bythe Department of Health andfundraised income.

Paul Bott, Vista’s chief executive,said: “Thanks to the Butterfly Lounge,New Wycliffe Home is now a

Department of Health ‘Beacon Site’for improving dementia care.

“It has been specifically designed tohelp older people with dementia tomaintain their independence, reduceany distress or anxiety, and improveeach person’s health and emotionalwellbeing.

“This innovative facility leads theway in improving the quality of carethat individuals with dementiareceive.”

In addition to funding from theDepartment of Health, The EdithMurphy Foundation and The SylviaWaddilove Foundation UK alsocontributed for the construction.

Funding for the furniture wasprovided by The Percy Bilton Charityand Next Retail Limited.

Duchess opens Butterfly LoungeHer Grace, the Dowager Duchess of Rutland, performed the opening at Vista’s NewWycliffe Home.

Adept Care Homes has received £4.65million loan facilities from The Royal Bank ofScotland to allow a second new care home in the group to commence in Derby. KiwiHouse residential and dementia care home will allow for unrivalled facilities including78 spacious en-suite rooms, a hairdressing salon, a cinema room and a pub. The newpurpose-built facility has begun and will complete in May 2016, creating 80 full and parttime jobs – total employees across the group will rise to 340. Adept Care Homes hasbeen operating in the Midlands for over 30 years and boasts five established carehomes in the group.

A NEW £8.4m retirement livingscheme near Chester, built by YourHousing Group has been completed.

Kingswood has 82 one-and-twobedroom apartments availableincluding 48 for affordable rent, 17for sale and 17 for shared ownership.

The development is a joint initiativebetween Your Housing Group,Cheshire West and Chester Counciland the Homes and CommunitiesAgency, who contributed £1.8m offunding.

Residents will be able to enjoy arange of facilities including acommunal residents’ lounge, library,craft room offering a range of weeklyactivities and landscaped grounds.

All the apartments have wet roomsand well equipped kitchens with builtin appliances including integrated

oven, hob and extractor fan. Ahairdressers, beauty salon and bistrowill be open for the public to use.

Claire Henning, group salesmanager at Your Housing Group, said:“Kingswood is one of threeretirement living villages we haverecently delivered in the Chester areaas we respond to a need for highquality accommodation for localpeople 55 and over who want to liveindependently in their own home forlonger.

“Altogether we have built 450 extracare apartments across the NorthWest as part of our £150m affordablehousing programme and we believewe have raised the bar in terms of thestandard of accommodation we haveprovided for retired people in thearea .”

Living scheme completed

CARINGCOMMERCE34

CHANDLER & Co is delighted tosupport Tonbridge Care Ltd in therecent development of ChestnutLodge.

The care provider has successfullycompleted on the refinance of the 32-bed care home, which was a formerhotel.

It opened in June 2013 and iscurrently trading as a 32-bed allsingle, en-suite home. The recentrefinance will enable the owner toadd a further 21 single en-suitebedrooms. There is already a waitinglist for when the extension is opened.

Mark Hickman of Chandler & Cosecured funding on behalf ofTonbridge Care Ltd at 1.8 per centover base with no arrangement fee.

The transaction was completedwithin eight weeks of receiving theloan offer.

He said: “It was a pleasure to workagain with Krish and his team and wevery much look forward to workingwith them in the future.”

Dr Satkunam is a highlyexperienced operator. He is directorof Tonbridge Care Ltd which ownsand operates four care homes andthree children’s day nurseries.

Chandler & Co supportscare home development

GLOBAL Business Finance wasdelighted to be the broker of choicewhen an experienced care homeoperator with several homeswanted to raise finance to extendits 40-bed dementia home inLancashire by a further 20 beds.

Following the extension, theexisting facilities will be furtherupgraded with a modern receptionarea, new lounge space and 10existing bedrooms will have en-suites added.

Mark Widdows of Global BusinessFinance visited the care home with

the owner and compiled a detailedpack of information.

He then negotiated extensivelywith senior bankers to tailor ahighly competitive funding facilityto include an interest only periodand rate reduction followingcompletion of the extension.

Mark and his team will beworking with the home’smanagement team for the next yearto ensure all runs well as they breakground in the near future.

See Global Business Finance’sadvert on page 32.

20-bed extension planned

ADELAIDE House in RoyalLeamington Spa has been acquiredby experienced care operators Barryand Eibhlin Thorpe-Smith.

The sale of the business wasconducted by Andy Sandel of DCCare on behalf of vendors David andBreda Sutton, who had owned thehome for over 30 years.

David said “For several years priorto the sale, Andy at DC Care hadkindly given us very sound appraisalsof market conditions which enabledus to optimise the time of sale.Having taken instructions and, after a

discreet visit, DC Care was able toprovide a realistic valuation, but thenmore significantly, and very much toour advantage, was able to find apurchaser without formally puttingthe home on the open market.

“It was a great relief not to have astream of potential purchaserslooking round the home, which I'msure would have led to suspicionsfrom the staff. As it was, when it cameto exchange of contracts, no oneother than our manager who hadbeen briefed from the outset, wasaware of the sale.”

Adelaide House sold discreetlyAdelaide House in Royal Leamington Spa.

FACILITIES management andrefurbishment company Vivark hasconducted a programme ofredecoration, repairs andmaintenance at a highly subscribedLiverpool cancer support centre.

Vivark delivered a range of servicesfor Lyndale Knowsley Cancer SupportCentre, comprising painting,decorating, plumbing and joineryworks.

The combination of Vivark’s fullyflexible service, expert execution andreliability was vital to the North Westhealthcare provider.

The company completed the projectin just two weeks and timetabled itswork around Lyndale’s busy schedule.This meant that the centre’s supportsessions, classes and complementarytherapies could continue unhinderedby the activity of Vivark’s expert team.

Vivark’s executive director, TonyCahill, said: “In order to secure thiswork and meet the client’s brief, it

was imperative that we provided aflexible approach paired with a highquality finish.

“The sensitive nature of Lyndale’swork also meant a rigorous attitudeto health and safety was required. Wetook the time to understand thechallenges the project at the centrepresented and ensured that our workcould easily overcome theseobstacles.

“Our professional team exceededexpectations, providing a tailoredprogramme of redecoration, repairsand maintenance in a timely manner,all with minimal disruption to thecentre.”

To contact the Vivark team about yourrefurbishment and repairs projects,

email enquiries@vivark.co.uk

Advertiser’s announcement

Vivark delivers fully flexiblefit-out for support centre

35CARINGNEWS

Eight members of staff from a care home near Derby and one of the directors’ five-year-old daughter took part in a local Race for Life 5km event to raise funds for CancerResearch UK. Most of the Coxbench Hall Residential Home team were novices to runningor walking long distances and certainly had not entered a race over a mile long before.The team, made up of two directors, three senior care aides, two care aides and adomestic and kitchen assistant, completed the course in respectable times and raisedover £700 in sponsorship money for the charity.

Operator introducesapp for his staff toreduce paperworkBy Olivia Taylor

A CARE expert in Shropshire is pio-neering a new way of working carersusing a mobile phone app to log care.

Steve Harris, managing director ofCarewatch, thought of the idea of anapp to reduce paperwork for his 50employees a few years ago.

Staff have been trained in how touse the new app, and it will be rolledout across his Stafford Park-basedcompany.

Steve said: “I put a lot of time andeffort into developing an app -although I never pushed ahead withmy version, I am delighted that weare now able to provide this servicefor our staff which will hopefullymake their working day easier, pro-ductivity increase and the customerexperience will improve.”

The app has been developed bytechnology firm Mobizo. It is avail-able on iOS or Android phones aswell as computers.

Steve said: “We are expecting to save£3,000 per nurse or care worker and atypical productivity savings for fieldstaff of 10 to 20per cent.

The app aims to remove inefficientpaper processes, provide real-timevisibility and ensure staff in the fieldare compliant.

Care plans, logs, assessments and

any other forms used by Carewatch(Mid Shropshire) will be digitalisedand staff can also work offline, in casethe connection in rural areas is weak.

Abhishek Agrawal, managing direc-tor of Mobizio, said their company isdelighted to be working with Steve.

He said:“Mobizio helps careproviders meet these challenges byenabling them to deliver a moretransparent, productive and higherquality service.

“We are delighted that Steve Harrisselected Mobizio and I look forwardto working in partnership with suchan innovative organisation asCarewatch.”

Steve Harris

‘Your Vote Counts’campaign is a hitfor care providerTHE 2015 voting campaign led by theOrders of St. John Care Trust (hasproved to be successful.

As part of the campaign, the group’s68 care homes ran a series of eventsto get residents interested in thisyear’s General Election, includingwelcoming local parliamentary can-didates from all parties for meet-and-greets and Q&A sessions, as well ashosting in-home political debates.

The Trust also helped transport resi-dents to the polls on May 7, as well ascollating and sending sealed postalvotes to local authorities.

Sara Livadeas, OSJCT strategy direc-tor, said: “We are so pleased with theway the campaign unfolded and aregrateful for the time invested in ourolder people by so many of the par-liamentary candidates.

“We anticipate the campaign willhave a lasting positive effect on per-son-centred working in our carehomes and hope that the interests ofthe oldest and frailest in our societywill remain high in the minds of ourMPs.”

Other successes achieved throughOSJCT’s “Your Vote Counts” cam-paign include:� Increasing awareness that olderpeople shouldn’t be forgotten andthat their opinions are valuable andimportant.� Increasing confidence within resi-

dents, in terms of helping themrecognise their self-worth, resultingin greater independence and well-being.� Strengthening local communityrelationships and opening up wideropportunities for activities, eventsand community integration.� Heightening awareness withincommunities of what life in carehomes is really like, portraying thevibrant nature of care homes andchanging negative perceptions.� Enabling employees to learn moreabout residents, thereby enhancing“person-centred” care delivery.

Comic Relief granted OSJCT muchof the funding required to run the“Your Vote Counts” campaign, whichwas the only one of its kind aimed atolder people living in care homes.

OSJCT also worked closely with theNational Development Team forInclusion throughout the campaign.

The NDTi held a series of work-shops for over 120 residents and careworkers from the Trust who had vol-unteered to become designatedVoting Champions responsible fororganising election activities andhelping residents register to vote.

Now that the General Election hascome and gone, OSJCT’s care homesare seeking to build on the communi-ty links and opportunities generatedby the voting campaign.

BARCHESTER Healthcare’s healthand safety team collected a RoSPAGold Award for occupational healthand safety at a ceremony..

The RoSPA Awards promote theimportance of occupational healthand safety and acknowledge organi-sations that excel in this area.

They are internationally recognisedand have fast become the mostsought after accolade by organisa-tions from every sector.

RoSPA Gold Award winners haveachieved a very high level of perfor-mance, demonstrating well-devel-

oped occupational health and safetymanagement systems and culture,outstanding control of risk and verylow levels of error, harm and loss.

Director of health and safety CathDyson said: “My team and I werethrilled that Barchester was awardedGold, and collecting the award was avery proud and exciting moment.

“Winning Gold at our first attemptclearly demonstrates the commit-ment of my team and the supportfrom our senior management teamwho regard health and safety as a keymanagement function.”

Health and safety team win gold

Barchester Healthcare’s health and safety managers Fiona Torrie, Paul Mason, KirstyIllingworth and Andy Hollingshead with director of health and safety Cath Dyson and theRoSPA Gold Award.

CARINGPRODUCT NEWS36

What’s the difference between ‘claimsoccurring’ and ‘claims made’? By Babbar Abbas

A NUMBER of insurers are changingthe way they cover you for claims.

A ‘claims occurring’ basis coversclaims that occur during the policyperiod irrespective of when the claimis made. So you may have changedinsurer but they will still accept aclaim even though the policy hasended.

A ‘claims made’ basis covers claimsthat are made and reported duringthe policy period only and not oncethe policy period is over. Yourprevious insurer will no longer acceptthe claim as you have movedprovider.

On lapsing or cancelling a ‘claimsmade’ policy, the historic cover paidfor has expired. This may seem unfair,but it is becoming more common asit usually limits the exposure forinsurance companies.

Examples to make it clearer:Claims occurring basis:

Company A is insured with insurerone from period January 1, 2014 toDecember 31, 2014 and finds a morecompetitive quote and movesinsurers as of January 1, 2015. OnJanuary 2 a liability claim is reportedto insurer A where the incident datewas December 30, 2014. As theincident occurred when insurer onewas insuring company A, claimsoccurring liability ensures thatcompany A is adequately coveredeven though they are no longerinsured with insurer one.

Claims made basis:Using the same example as above,with the same dates; if a claim isreported to insurer two and they areno longer insuring company A theywill not proceed to settle the claim. Ifcompany A has not sourced ‘run off’cover this will put them in a difficultposition of not being insured byinsurer two and not being insured bythe new insurer.

The above examples shouldillustrate that a claims occurring basisis usually the most prudent basis toadopt within the care homeinsurance sector.

While care has been taken in theproduction of this article theinformation contained within it hasbeen obtained from sources that AonUK Limited believes to be reliable.

Aon UK Limited does not warrant,represent or guarantee the accuracy,adequacy, completeness or fitness forany purpose of the article or any partof it and can accept no liability forany loss incurred in any waywhatsoever by any person who mayrely on it.

In any case any recipient shall beentirely responsible for the use towhich it puts this article.

This article has been compiledusing information available to us upto 10/07/15. � Babbar Abbas is care clientmanager at Aon. Babbar Abbas

New sales managerfor Active BathingACTIVE Bathing is delighted toannounce that Clare Long has joinedthe growing company, taking up therole of National Care Home SalesManager.

Having spent more than 10 years inthe industry, Clare has gained a vastamount of knowledge and industryexperience in bathing, hoisting andshowering products and is keen tobuild on the strong foundationsalready in place at Active Bathing,part of the Astor-Bannerman(Medical) Ltd group of companies.

With the team at Active Bathinghaving already secured contracts withmajor care providers, Clare and theteam are keen to demonstrate thatActive Bathing is set to become aserious player in the marketplace.

Clare said: “Working with such adedicated and forward thinking team,combined with the exceptionalquality of our products, some ofwhich have been designedspecifically for the care home market,I am very excited about what thefuture holds.

“Combined with the highest levels

of training, service and aftercarepackages we already offer and willcontinue to develop, we canconfidently offer our customerscomplete peace of mind whenchoosing an Active Bathing product.”

Clare Long

CARE Ideals is a managementconsultancy service that providespositive, long-term solutions forhealthcare businesses, their serviceusers and staff.

We have a wealth of diverse andrelevant operational, clinical andfinancial experience, which allowsus to support and assist manydifferent types of healthcarebusinesses, including care homes,nursing homes, residential units,mental health and learning

disability hospitals, and domiciliarycare providers.

Your healthcare business may befacing regulatory, clinical oroccupancy concerns.

You might be confronted withserious operational, humanresources or safeguardingdifficulties.

You could need assistance indeveloping and expanding yourbusiness or you may not be sureabout “where to next”.

We can deliver beneficial, cost-effective solutions for all of thesechallenges; and we will support youwhilst the solutions are beingimplemented.

We have four core principles thatunderpin how we approach allchallenges.

These principles assist us in beingable to knowledgeably advise,improve and future-proof healthcarebusinesses.

Our core principles are:

� Safety and preparation.� Culture.� Customer care.� Treatment and recovery.

We will always work in partnershipwith you, so as to create effective,forward momentum for yourhealthcare business, your serviceusers and your staff. This forwardmomentum, in conjunction with thepositive solutions we provide, willassist in improving the financialposition of your business.

Care Ideals provides positive, long-term solutions

BEAUCARE® has been providingservicing and LOLER support to carehomes and the healthcare sector for acouple of decades now.

This area of the business has seensubstantial growth over the last sixmonths.

Ensuring our commitment tocustomers and quality of servicecontinues, we have employedanother administrator and twoSouthern engineers.

The new engineers will provide

customer support, in the South Eastand South West of the country.

The team undertake servicing,maintenance and repair of all carehome equipment including patienthoists, stand aids, ceiling track, baths,bath hoists, profiling beds, mobilityequipment, slings, wheelchairs andscales.

We ensure regular servicing andmaintenance is completed toindustry guidelines and complieswith our ISO 9001 procedures.

Servicing team is strengthened

CARINGPRODUCT NEWS 37

Beaucare launches comprehensivenew medical catalogue

OUR most comprehensive catalogue to date ispacked full of all the everyday medical equipmentand consumables a care home requires.

We have broadened our product offeringswithin a number of ranges, including introducingnew nursing profiling beds, which were showcasedat the Birmingham Care Show last year, anddementia care products to mention a few.

We guarantee a one-stop shop policy, withorders placed by 5pm being delivered next day atno extra cost.

Beaucare® Medical Ltd, established since 1992,is the UK’s premier supplier of hygiene, medicalsupplies and equipment to individual care homes,care home groups, hospitals and NHS Trusts.

Enquiries: To obtain your copy call 01423 878899, email sales@beaucare.com

or visit www.beaucare.com

Claim VAT back on your home evenif you are not VAT registered

IT is true, care providers can reclaim VAT worthabout £3,000 per bed for any residents who stayedin your home between 1993 and 2002 paid for bythe local authority.

You don’t have to be VAT registered to make aclaim. We can usually find the information requiredwith minimal disruption to your business.

How is this possible? Well in 2002 a careprovider called Kingscrest challenged the view heldby HMRC and won. There is no cost to you unlesswe are successful.

Typical claims: 50 beds – £240,000; 40 beds –£170,000; 287 beds – £1.25m.

And the best part is that you get the money inyour bank account before you pay us. Don’t forget

the tax repayment is free of tax – it is extra profit.Enquiries: Call 01233 640985 and ask for Howard to find out more.

SINCE 1982, Colne (Lancs) based, RichardsResidential Supplies have concentrated uponsupplying simple solutions to common nursinghome problems.

The new WACMAT® adheres strongly to thistradition.

With its ultra absorbent cotton pile and 100 percent waterproof backing, the remarkableWACMAT® is an ideal accessory where spills mayoccur.

Used as a commode mat, in bedrooms orbathrooms, the WACMAT® ensures full carpetprotection. Then, after use, simply machine washand tumble dry! It’s that simple...

The WACMAT® will then be clean and odour-free, ready to perform time and time again.Alternatively the flat-laying WACMAT® can be usedas an entrance mat, saving you hundreds of poundsin rental costs alone.

Enquiries: Telephone 0800 074 3749.

Simple solutionsOMNICELL Inc. (OMCL) a leading provider ofmedication and supply management solutions tothe global healthcare market announces its plansto consolidate each of its UK businesses,Surgichem Limited and MTS MedicationTechnologies.

The company’s headquarters for Europe, theMiddle East and Africa is now based in Irlam(Manchester). This move will allow Omnicell to takeadvantage of Manchester’s strong talent pool andtransport networks to support the company’sgrowth and expansion, as well as reinforce itsheritage as a leading provider in medicationadherence packaging and automation.

The existing MTS and Surgichem product brands,Easyblist and Nomad, will both be renamed as‘SureMed® by Omnicell’ over the coming monthsand will be accompanied by a new visual identity.

Combining the leading multi and single-dosepackaging technologies of MTS MedicationTechnologies with the complementary Surgichemoffering in one location is expected to acceleratethe development of new medication adherence

products and service offerings to benefit healthcare providers and their patients across the world.

Enquiries: Visit www.omnicell.com

Omnicell consolidates UK businessesand moves to new headquarters

Another conviction – are your policiesand procedures up to date?

Firm brings communal areasup to date as part of refurbSHACKLETONS was chosen to workwith Colchester Borough Homes aspart of a £3million revamp ofsheltered housing for the elderlythroughout the borough.

Working on the completerefurbishment and modernisation ofthe 1970’s built Worsnop House;Shackletons took on the task of re-vamping the communal areas toreflect Colchester Borough Homes’investment in modernity andefficiency.

Ruth Hamnett, adaptationsmanager, said: “Working withShackletons really worked for us.After completion we held an openday to allow people to see thetransformation for themselves. I haveto say it was extremely positive andthe refurb really did encouragedpeople to want to live at Worsnop.”

The Shackletons team completedthe refurbishment of the lobby,communal lounge and dining area,

quite lounge, private dining room,guest room and conservatory.

Lisa Gibbons, regional salesmanager at Shackletons, added:“Taking a 1970’s interior andtransforming how it looks and feels toachieve something thoroughly up todate while complementing its widersurroundings was a fantastic brief tofulfill – we’re extremely happy withthe results.”

WORKING in the care sectorpresents everyone with anemotional seesaw; sometimes onyour own and isolated or gettingbogged down in complex topics,but mainly meandering along andgetting to deliver fantasticoutcomes for all those people beingsupported and cared for.

So in order to overcome the ‘silo’and ‘swamp’ times, especiallyrelating to health and safety, theNASHiCS 2015 National Learningand Development Forum onSeptember 9 and 10 at Holiday Inn,Stratford upon Avon titledIntegration Matters (Health/Safety/ Care) Working as One, willgive a unique opportunity for careproviders to find solutions and hearabout good practice that will helpwith the day to day health andsafety challenges while networkingwith like-minded colleagues.

For the first time, two of our keyregulators with changing roles, willshare the platform and addressdelegates.

Are you responsible for safety andhealth? We will explore topicscovering fire safety, whistle-blowing, regulation,violence,employee wellbeing, enforcementand telecare technology.

Speakers include: � Philip White, head of operationalstrategy division, Health and SafetyExecutive. � Alex Baylis, head of acute policy,Care Quality Commission. � Sarah Weston, innovationmanager, HF Trust. � Emma Nicholls, personalised

technology manager, HF Trust. � Andrew Peel, partner, BrowneJacobson LLP. � Sue Sheath, head of regulation,Barchester Healthcare. � Dave Sibert, fire safety andintegrated risk managementadvisor, Fire Brigades’ Union. � Keiron Davey, technical firesafety manager. Lincolnshire Fireand Rescue Service. � Ruth Fletcher-Brown, publichealth specialist Rotherham PublicHealth. � Liz Mulvaney, head of health,Freeths LLP.

Clare Pelham, past chairman ofVoluntary Organisations DisabilityGroups and chief executive ofLeonard Cheshire Disability, willchair the event.

For further Information, fullprogramme and online bookingvisit www.nashics.org

Silos and Swampsand Streams

A DIRECTOR of a Bristol homecare agency wasconvicted for failing to provide documentation orregister with the CQC, earlier this year.

Bristol Crown Court was told that she continuedto provide care services despite not checking thesuitability or skills of those she employed, orkeeping suitable records.

This recent conviction is a stark reminder thatthe CQC will take legal action against managersoperating care services without registration andcompliance procedures in place.

Quality Compliance Systems (QCS) provides freeadvice for care managers seeking CQC registrationand ongoing compliance support for CQCinspections.

By managing compliance with QCS, you can be

confident that policies are up to date – so you canconcentrate on providing the care your serviceusers need.

Enquiries: Contact the QCS advice line on0333 405 3333 for help with your CQC

compliance or visit www.ukqcs.co.uk/CU157

38

Auctioneers

Signs

Worldwide recognitionfor general managerSUZANNE Spurgin, general managerat a Sunrise Senior Living communityin Surrey, has received internationalrecognition for her work.

Suzanne, a qualified chef, hasrecently returned from a trip to SanDiego, USA, where she was given theSales Leadership award at the SunriseSenior Living Awards.

She faced tough competition frompeople in the UK, as well as Canadaand the USA, where Sunrise is based.

Suzanne first joined Sunrise’scommunity in Frognal, Kent 11 yearsago as head chef, having worked inthe catering for her entire career untilthat point.

After deciding she wanted to changecareer paths, her potential wasrecognised and she was moved into amanagerial role there before going tothe Banstead community where shehas been for six years.

When presented with the prize,Suzanne was praised for theoutstanding way she has managedher team, ensured the community isof a high standard and drivenconsistent high occupancy at thecommunity.

Suzanne said: “I am absolutely

delighted to have been given thisaward. I was up against people fromthe USA and Canada, where Sunrisehas around 250 communities, so itwas never going to be easy.

“Of course, my team at Bansteadhave played such an important rolein me receiving the award – it’s asmuch theirs as it is mine.”

Suzanne Spurgin was given the SalesLeadership award at the Sunrise SeniorLiving Awards.

HOMECARE network Right at HomeUK is preparing to roll out itsrevolutionary new ‘Dementia DELAY’programme following a successfultrial period.

The announcement will see theservice, which it trialled in Sutton andFarnham, rolled out across the UKover the coming months.

Dementia DELAY is a new servicethat Right at Home has developed inconjunction with Mary Jordan,author of ‘The essential guide toavoiding dementia: understandingthe risks’.

The programme uses qualityhomecare support to slow theprogression of dementia symptoms

and is based around five core pillars:Diet, Engaging with others, Learning& mental stimulation, Avoiding stressand Your body & exercise.

Alistair Shanks, who heads up Rightat Home Guildford & Farnham andhelped to develop the programmes,said: “We’ve worked extensively, withnumerous experts, over the last 12months to develop a programme thatwill give our clients’ high level andtailored care to delay the early onsetof dementia.”

Right at Home has also beenworking in partnership with AffinityTraining to develop on a bespokeadvanced training course indementia care.

DELAY programme unveiled